Switzerland
Switzerland the Swiss Confederation, is a country situated in western and southern Europe. It consists of 26 cantons, the city of Bern is the seat of the federal authorities; the sovereign state is a federal republic bordered by Italy to the south, France to the west, Germany to the north, Austria and Liechtenstein to the east. Switzerland is a landlocked country geographically divided between the Alps, the Swiss Plateau and the Jura, spanning a total area of 41,285 km2. While the Alps occupy the greater part of the territory, the Swiss population of 8.5 million people is concentrated on the plateau, where the largest cities are to be found: among them are the two global cities and economic centres Zürich and Geneva. The establishment of the Old Swiss Confederacy dates to the late medieval period, resulting from a series of military successes against Austria and Burgundy. Swiss independence from the Holy Roman Empire was formally recognized in the Peace of Westphalia in 1648; the country has a history of armed neutrality going back to the Reformation.
It pursues an active foreign policy and is involved in peace-building processes around the world. In addition to being the birthplace of the Red Cross, Switzerland is home to numerous international organisations, including the second largest UN office. On the European level, it is a founding member of the European Free Trade Association, but notably not part of the European Union, the European Economic Area or the Eurozone. However, it participates in the Schengen Area and the European Single Market through bilateral treaties. Spanning the intersection of Germanic and Romance Europe, Switzerland comprises four main linguistic and cultural regions: German, French and Romansh. Although the majority of the population are German-speaking, Swiss national identity is rooted in a common historical background, shared values such as federalism and direct democracy, Alpine symbolism. Due to its linguistic diversity, Switzerland is known by a variety of native names: Schweiz. On coins and stamps, the Latin name – shortened to "Helvetia" – is used instead of the four national languages.
Switzerland is one of the most developed countries in the world, with the highest nominal wealth per adult and the eighth-highest per capita gross domestic product according to the IMF. Switzerland ranks at or near the top globally in several metrics of national performance, including government transparency, civil liberties, quality of life, economic competitiveness and human development. Zürich and Basel have all three been ranked among the top ten cities in the world in terms of quality of life, with the first ranked second globally, according to Mercer in 2018; the English name Switzerland is a compound containing Switzer, an obsolete term for the Swiss, in use during the 16th to 19th centuries. The English adjective Swiss is a loan from French Suisse in use since the 16th century; the name Switzer is from the Alemannic Schwiizer, in origin an inhabitant of Schwyz and its associated territory, one of the Waldstätten cantons which formed the nucleus of the Old Swiss Confederacy. The Swiss began to adopt the name for themselves after the Swabian War of 1499, used alongside the term for "Confederates", used since the 14th century.
The data code for Switzerland, CH, is derived from Latin Confoederatio Helvetica. The toponym Schwyz itself was first attested in 972, as Old High German Suittes perhaps related to swedan ‘to burn’, referring to the area of forest, burned and cleared to build; the name was extended to the area dominated by the canton, after the Swabian War of 1499 came to be used for the entire Confederation. The Swiss German name of the country, Schwiiz, is homophonous to that of the canton and the settlement, but distinguished by the use of the definite article; the Latin name Confoederatio Helvetica was neologized and introduced after the formation of the federal state in 1848, harking back to the Napoleonic Helvetic Republic, appearing on coins from 1879, inscribed on the Federal Palace in 1902 and after 1948 used in the official seal.. Helvetica is derived from the Helvetii, a Gaulish tribe living on the Swiss plateau before the Roman era. Helvetia appears as a national personification of the Swiss confederacy in the 17th century with a 1672 play by Johann Caspar Weissenbach.
Switzerland has existed as a state in its present form since the adoption of the Swiss Federal Constitution in 1848. The precursors of Switzerland established a protective alliance at the end of the 13th century, forming a loose confederation of states which persisted for centuries; the oldest traces of hominid existence in Switzerland date back about 150,000 years. The oldest known farming settlements in Switzerland, which were found at Gächlingen, have been dated to around 5300 BC; the earliest known cultural tribes of the area were members of the Hallstatt and La Tène cultures, named after the archaeological site of La Tène on the north side of Lake Neuchâtel. La Tène culture developed and flourished during the late Iron Age from around 450 BC under some influence from the Gree
Amilcar
The Amilcar was a French automobile manufactured from 1921 to 1940. Amilcar was founded in July 1921 by Emile Akar; the name "Amilcar" was an imperfect anagram of the partners' names. The business was established at 34 rue du Chemin-Vert in the 11th arrondissement of Paris. However, Amilcar outgrew their restricted city-centre premises, during the middle part of 1924 the company relocated to Saint-Denis on the northern edge of the city; the original Amilcar was a small cyclecar. Designed by Jules Salomon and Edmond Moyet, it bore a striking resemblance to the pre-war Le Zèbre; the vehicle was first exhibited at the Paris Motor Show in October 1921. The business was a leading beneficiary of a cyclecar boom, prompted by a government initiative which held out the promise of a reduced rate of annual car tax, fixed at 100 francs per year, for powered vehicles weighing no more than 350 kg, providing seating for no more than two people and powered by an engine of not more than 1100cc. Once a vehicle exceeded these limits it ceased to be a cyclecar and was instead designated a voiturette.
The 4-cylinder 903cc Amilcar CC appeared with a wheelbase of just 2,320 mm. The CC subsequently became available in two further versions; the side-valve engine had splash lubrication, came with a three-speed gearbox. The most famous model of all was the CGS "Grand Sport" of 1924; this in turn evolved into the more sporty CGSS "Grand Sport Surbaissé". These models were built under license in Austria and in Italy; the marque entered automobile racing in the mid-1920s with a batch of supercharged dohc 1100 cc six-cylinder cars that used a roller bearing crankshaft in the full racing version. During the 1920s the company expanded out of its original comfort zone of small economical cars: the results were mixed; the founders and Lamy, becoming less involved with the management of the business, were persuaded to conclude, in 1931, a business agreement with André Briès and Marcel Sée. Sée knew Amilcar from the inside, having in January 1929 been dismissed from a position involved in management of the company.
The early 1930s were years of economic crisis in France, at the end of 1933 a company owned by Briès and Sée, called "Sofia", took effective control of Amilcar, which continued to function under its existing name. From 1928 the company offered a light touring car, it was followed by the M2, M3, M4 versions. The M-type and its successors continued to be produced through the ensuing years of financial difficulty, offered for sale till 1935, though production ended in 1934. 1928 saw the introduction of a straight eight, built with an ohc 2.3-liter engine. This, the C8, proved unreliable, soon disappeared with only a few hundred produced; the acquisition of Amilcar by "Sofia" in 1933 did not in itself resolve the financial pressures. At the end of August 1934, still faced with disappointing sales volumes, the factory at Saint-Denis closed for the last time, as management struggled to save the business. A new model was needed and in October 1934 the company presented the new 2-litre Amilcar Pégase powered by a 4-cylinder ohv 2150 cc engine supplied by Delahaye.
There was a competition version of the Pégase with a 2490 cc engine. By October 1935, the smaller Amilcar models having been discontinued, the Pégase, produced under much reduced circumstances at premises in Boulogne-Billancourt, was the only Amilcar model listed. Recognising the impossibility of sustaining the Amilcar business with a single model, but unsure of how to finance or produce another, management turned to Hotchkiss which had taken a large shareholding in "Sofia", Amilcar's holding company. Hotchkiss had problems of their own at this time, their hugely lucrative armaments business having been nationalised by the left-wing Blum government, while their middle-market automobile business was under increasing pressure as volume automakers became more effective in pushing their own ranges upmarket with models such as the Peugeot 402 and the Citroën Traction. Henry Mann Ainsworth, the Automobile Director at Hotchkiss, had been presented, by the high-profile engineer Jean-Albert Grégoire, with a promising prototype for a lightweight 7CV category, technically advanced family car.
It was agreed that the automotive businesses of Hotchkiss and Amilcar would be merged and the prototype would be developed into an Amilcar model that would become the Amilcar Compound. The front-wheel-drive Amilcar Compound was technically advanced in design for its era, featuring a monocoque frame made of a light alloy and independent suspension all around, its engine at launch was a four-cylinder side-valve unit of 1185 cc. The Compound's ambitious use of aluminium in its body structure, its front-wheel-drive configuration, meant that production got off to a slow start, although it was launched in October 1937, 584 of the 681 passenger cars produced date only from 1939, with a further 64 produced during the early months of 1940, before the German invasion of May/June 1940 ended civilian automobile production in the Paris region
Basel
Basel is a city in northwestern Switzerland on the river Rhine. Basel is Switzerland's third-most-populous city with about 180,000 inhabitants. Located where the Swiss and German borders meet, Basel has suburbs in France and Germany; as of 2016, the Swiss Basel agglomeration was the third-largest in Switzerland, with a population of 541,000 in 74 municipalities in Switzerland. The initiative Trinational Eurodistrict Basel of 62 suburban communes including municipalities in neighboring countries, counted 829,000 inhabitants in 2007; the official language of Basel is German, but the main spoken language is the local Basel German dialect. The city is known for its many internationally renowned museums, ranging from the Kunstmuseum, the first collection of art accessible to the public in Europe and the largest museum of art in the whole of Switzerland, to the Fondation Beyeler; the University of Basel, Switzerland's oldest university, the city's centuries-long commitment to humanism, have made Basel a safe haven at times of political unrest in other parts of Europe for such notable people as Erasmus of Rotterdam, the Holbein family, Friedrich Nietzsche and in the 20th century Hermann Hesse and Karl Jaspers.
The city of Basel is Switzerland's second-largest economic centre after the city of Zürich and has the highest GDP per capita in the country, ahead of the cantons of Zug and Geneva. In terms of value, over 94% of Basel City's goods exports are in the chemical and pharmaceutical sectors. With production facilities located in the neighboring Schweizerhalle, Basel accounts for 20% of Swiss exports and generates one third of the national product. Basel has been the seat of a Prince-Bishopric since the 11th century, joined the Swiss Confederacy in 1501; the city has been a commercial hub and an important cultural centre since the Renaissance, has emerged as a centre for the chemical and pharmaceutical industries in the 20th century. In 1897, Basel was chosen by Theodor Herzl as the location for the first World Zionist Congress, altogether the congress has been held there ten times over a time span of 50 years, more than in any other location; the city is home to the world headquarters of the Bank for International Settlements.
In 2019 Basel, was ranked among the ten most liveable cities in the world by Mercer together with Zürich and Geneva. There are traces of a settlement at the Rhine knee from the early La Tène period. In the 2nd century BC, there was a village of the Raurici at the site of Basel-Gasfabrik, to the northwest of the Old City identical with the town of Arialbinnum mentioned on the Tabula Peutingeriana; the unfortified settlement was abandoned in the 1st century BC in favour of an oppidum on the site of Basel Minster in reaction to the Roman invasion of Gaul. In Roman Gaul, Augusta Raurica was established some 20 km from Basel as the regional administrative centre, while a castra was built on the site of the Celtic oppidum; the city of Basel grew around the castra. In AD 83, Basel was incorporated into the Roman province of Germania Superior. Roman control over the area deteriorated in the 3rd century, Basel became an outpost of the Provincia Maxima Sequanorum formed by Diocletian; the Germanic confederation of the Alemanni attempted to cross the Rhine several times in the 4th century, but were repelled.
However, in the great invasion of AD 406, the Alemanni appear to have crossed the Rhine river a final time and settling what is today Alsace and a large part of the Swiss Plateau. From that time, Basel has been an Alemannic settlement; the Duchy of Alemannia fell under Frankish rule in the 6th century, by the 7th century, the former bishopric of Augusta Raurica was re-established as the Bishopric of Basel. Based on the evidence of a third solidus with the inscription Basilia fit, Basel seems to have minted its own coins in the 7th century. Under bishop Haito, the first cathedral was built on the site of the Roman castle replaced by a Romanesque structure consecrated in 1019. At the partition of the Carolingian Empire, Basel was first given to West Francia, but it passed to East Francia with the treaty of Meerssen of 870; the city was plundered and destroyed by a Magyar invasion in 917. The rebuilt city became part of Upper Burgundy, as such was incorporated into the Holy Roman Empire in 1032.
From the donation by Rudolph III of Burgundy of the Moutier-Grandval Abbey and all its possessions to Bishop Adalbero II of Metz in 999 until the Reformation, Basel was ruled by prince-bishops. In 1019, the construction of the cathedral of Basel began under Holy Roman Emperor. In 1225–1226, a bridge, now known as the Middle Bridge, was constructed by Bishop Heinrich von Thun and Lesser Basel founded as a bridgehead to protect the bridge; the bridge was funded by Basel's Jewish community who had settled there a century earlier. For many centuries to come Basel possessed the only permanent bridge over the river "between Lake Constance and the sea"; the Bishop allowed the furriers to establish a guild in 1226. About 15 guilds were established in the 13th century, they increased the town's, hence the bishop's, reputation and income from the taxes and duties on goods in Basel's expanding market. The plague came to Europe in 1347, but did not reach Basel until June 1349. The
Fishing reel
A fishing reel is a cylindrical device attached to a fishing rod used in winding and stowing line. Modern fishing reels have fittings aiding in casting for distance and accuracy, as well as retrieving line. Fishing reels are traditionally used in the recreational sport of competitive casting, they are attached to a fishing rod, though some specialized reels are mounted directly to boat gunwales or transoms. The fishing reel was invented in Song dynasty China, where the earliest known illustration of a fishing reel is from Chinese paintings and records beginning about 1195 AD. Fishing reels first appeared in England around 1650 AD, by the 1760s, London tackle shops were advertising multiplying or gear-retrieved reels; the first popular American fishing reel appeared in the U. S. around 1820. In literary records, the earliest evidence of the fishing reel comes from a 4th-century AD work entitled Lives of Famous Immortals; the earliest known depiction of a fishing reel comes from a Southern Song painting done in 1195 by Ma Yuan called "Angler on a Wintry Lake," showing a man sitting on a small sampan boat while casting out his fishing line.
Another fishing reel was featured in a painting by Wu Zhen. The book Tianzhu lingqian, printed sometime between 1208 and 1224, features two different woodblock print illustrations of fishing reels being used. An Armenian parchment Gospel of the 13th century shows a reel; the Sancai Tuhui, a Chinese encyclopedia published in 1609, features the next known picture of a fishing reel and vividly shows the windlass pulley of the device. These five pictures mentioned are the only ones which feature fishing reels before the year 1651; the first English book on fishing is "A Treatise of Fishing with an Angle" in 1496. However, the book did not mention a reel. A primitive reel was first cited in the book, "The Art of Angling" 1651. Fishing reels first appeared in England around a time of growing interest in fly fishing; the fishing industry became commercialized in the 18th century, with rods and tackle being sold at the haberdashers store. After the Great Fire of London in 1666, artisans moved to Redditch which became a centre of production of fishing related products from the 1730s.
Onesimus Ustonson established his trading shop in 1761, his establishment remained as a market leader for the next century. He received a Royal Warrant from three successive monarchs starting with King George IV; some have credited Onesimus with the invention of the fishing reel - he was the first to advertise its sale. Early multiplying reels were wide and had a small diameter, their gears, made of brass wore down after extensive use, his earliest advertisement in the form of a trading card date from 1768 and was entitled To all lovers of angling. A full list of the tackles he sold included artificial flies, and'the best sort of multiplying brass winches both stop and plain'; the commercialization of the industry came at a time of expanded interest in fishing as a recreational hobby for members of the aristocracy. Modern reel design had begun in England during the latter part of the 18th century, the predominant model in use was known as the'Nottingham reel'; the reel was a wide drum which spooled out and was ideal for allowing the bait to drift along way out with the current.
Tackle design began to improve from the 1880s. The introduction of new woods to the manufacture of fly rods made it possible to cast flies into the wind on silk lines, instead of horse hair; these lines allowed for a much greater casting distance. A negative consequence of this, was that it became easy for the much longer line to get into a tangle; this problem spurred the invention of the regulator to evenly spool the line out and prevent tangling. Albert Illingworth, 1st Baron Illingworth a textiles magnate, patented the modern form of fixed-spool spinning reel in 1905; when casting Illingworth's reel design, the line was drawn off the leading edge of the spool, but was restrained and rewound by a line pickup, a device which orbits around the stationary spool. Because the line did not have to pull against a rotating spool, much lighter lures could be cast than with conventional reels. Geared multiplying reels never caught on in Britain, but had more success in the United States, where models were modified by George Snyder of Kentucky into his bait-casting reel, the first American-made design in 1810.
The American, Charles F. Orvis and distributed a novel reel and fly design in 1874, described by reel historian Jim Brown as the "benchmark of American reel design," and the first modern fly reel; the founding of The Orvis Company helped institutionalize fly fishing by supplying angling equipment via the circulation of his tackle catalogs, distributed to a small but devoted customer list. A fly reel is a single-action reel operated by stripping line off the reel with one hand, while casting the rod with the other hand; the main purpose of a fly reel is to store line, provide smooth uninterrupted tension when a fish makes a long run, counterbalance the weight of your fly rod when casting. When used in fly fishing, the fly reel or fly casting reel has traditionally been rather simple in terms of mechanical construction, little has changed from the design patented by Charles F. Orvis of Vermont in 1874. Orvis first introduced the idea of using light metals with multiple perforated holes to construct the housing, resulting in a lighter reel that allowed the spooled fly line to dry more than a conventional, solid-sided design.
Early fly reels placed. Most had no drag mechanism, but were fitted with a cl
Aston Martin
Aston Martin Lagonda Global Holdings plc is a British independent manufacturer of luxury sports cars and grand tourers. It was founded in 1913 by Robert Bamford. Steered from 1947 by David Brown, it became associated with expensive grand touring cars in the 1950s and 1960s, with the fictional character James Bond following his use of a DB5 model in the 1964 film Goldfinger, their sports cars are regarded as a British cultural icon. Aston Martin has held a Royal Warrant as purveyor of motorcars to the Prince of Wales since 1982, it has over 150 car dealerships in over 50 countries on six continents, making them a global automobile brand. The company is a constituent of the FTSE 250 Index. Headquarters and main production site are in Gaydon, England, alongside one of Jaguar Land Rover's development centres on the site of a former RAF V Bomber airbase. One of Aston Martin's recent cars was named after the 1950s Avro Vulcan bomber. Aston Martin has announced plans to turn itself into a global luxury brand, is branching out into projects including speed boats, bicycles and real estate development submarines and aircraft on a licensing basis.
Aston Martin had a troubled history after the third quarter of the 20th century but has enjoyed long periods of success and stability. "In the first century we went bankrupt seven times", incoming CEO Andy Palmer told Automotive News Europe. "The second century is about making sure, not the case." Aston Martin was founded in 1913 by Robert Bamford. The two had joined forces as Bamford & Martin the previous year to sell cars made by Singer from premises in Callow Street, London where they serviced GWK and Calthorpe vehicles. Martin raced specials at Aston Hill near Aston Clinton, the pair decided to make their own vehicles; the first car to be named Aston Martin was created by Martin by fitting a four-cylinder Coventry-Simplex engine to the chassis of a 1908 Isotta Fraschini. They acquired premises at Henniker Mews in Kensington and produced their first car in March 1915. Production could not start because of the outbreak of the first World War, Martin joined the Admiralty and Bamford joined the Army Service Corps.
After the war they found new premises at Abingdon Road and designed a new car. Bamford left in 1920 and Bamford & Martin was revitalised with funding from Count Louis Zborowski. In 1922, Bamford & Martin produced cars to compete in the French Grand Prix, which went on to set world speed and endurance records at Brooklands. Three works Team Cars with 16-valve twin cam engines were built for racing and record breaking: chassis number 1914 developed as the Green Pea. 55 cars were built for sale in two configurations. Bamford & Martin went bankrupt in 1924 and was bought by Dorothea, Lady Charnwood who put her son John Benson on the board. Bamford & Martin got into financial difficulty again in 1925 and Martin was forced to sell the company; that year, Bill Renwick, Augustus Bertelli and investors including Lady Charnwood took control of the business. They renamed it Aston Martin Motors and moved it to the former Whitehead Aircraft Limited Hanworth works in Feltham. Renwick and Bertelli had been in partnership some years and had developed an overhead-cam four-cylinder engine using Renwick's patented combustion chamber design, which they had tested in an Enfield-Allday chassis.
The only "Renwick and Bertelli" motor car made, it was known as "Buzzbox" and still survives. The pair had planned to sell their engine to motor manufacturers, but having heard that Aston Martin was no longer in production realised they could capitalise on its reputation to jump start the production of a new car. Between 1926 and 1937 Bertelli was both technical director and designer of all new Aston Martins, since known as "Bertelli cars", they included the 1½-litre "T-type", "International", "Le Mans", "MKII" and its racing derivative, the "Ulster", the 2-litre 15/98 and its racing derivative, the "Speed Model". Most were open two-seater sports cars bodied by Bert Bertelli's brother Enrico, with a small number of long-chassis four-seater tourers and saloons produced. Bertelli was a competent driver keen to race his cars, one of few owner/manufacturer/drivers; the "LM" team cars were successful in national and international motor racing including at Le Mans. Financial problems reappeared in 1932.
Aston Martin was rescued for a year by Lance Prideaux Brune before passing it on to Sir Arthur Sutherland. In 1936, Aston Martin decided to concentrate on road cars, producing just 700 until World War II halted work. Production shifted to aircraft components during the war. In 1947, old-established owned Huddersfield gear and machine tools manufacturer David Brown Limited bought Aston Martin putting it under control of its Tractor Group. David Brown became Aston Martin's latest saviour, he acquired without its factory Lagonda's business for its 2.6-litre W. O. Bentley-designed engine. Lagonda moved operations to Newport Pagnell and shared engines and workshops. Aston Martin began to build the classic "DB" series of cars. In April 1950, they announced planned production of their Le Mans prototype to be called the DB2, followed by the DB2/4 in 1953, the DB2/4 MkII in 1955, the DB Mark III in 1957 and the Italian-styled 3.7 L DB4 in 1958. While these models helped Aston Martin establish a good racing pedigree, the DB4 stood out and yielded the famous DB5 in 1963.
Aston stayed true to its grand touring style with the DB6, DBS (1967–1
Pont Alexandre III
The Pont Alexandre III is a deck arch bridge that spans the Seine in Paris. It connects the Champs-Élysées quarter with those of the Invalides and Eiffel Tower; the bridge is regarded as the most ornate, extravagant bridge in the city. It is classified as a French Monument historique since 1975; the Beaux-Arts style bridge, with its exuberant Art Nouveau lamps, cherubs and winged horses at either end, was built between 1896 and 1900. It is named after Tsar Alexander III, who had concluded the Franco-Russian Alliance in 1892, his son Nicholas II laid the foundation stone in October 1896. The style of the bridge reflects that of the Grand Palais; the construction of the bridge is a marvel of 19th century engineering, consisting of a 6 metres high single span steel arch. The design, by the architects Joseph Cassien-Bernard and Gaston Cousin, was constrained by the need to keep the bridge from obscuring the view of the Champs-Élysées or the Invalides; the bridge was built by the engineers Jean Amédée d'Alby.
It was inaugurated in 1900 for the Exposition Universelle World's Fair, as were the nearby Grand Palais and Petit Palais. Numerous sculptors provided the sculptures. Four gilt-bronze statues of Fames watch over the bridge, supported on massive 17 metres masonry socles, that provide stabilizing counterweight for the arch, without interfering with monumental views; the socles are crowned by Fames restraining Pegasus. On the Right Bank: Renommée des Sciences and the Renommée des Arts, both by Emmanuel Frémiet. At their bases, La France Contemporaine by Gustave Michel and France de Charlemagne by Alfred Lenoir; the lions groups are by Georges Gardet. On the Left Bank: Renommée du Commerce by Pierre Granet and Renommée de l'Industrie by Clément Steiner. At their bases, France de la Renaissance by Jules Coutan and La France de Louis XIV by Laurent Marqueste; the lions groups are by Jules Dalou. The Nymph reliefs are at the centres of the arches over the Seine, memorials to the Franco-Russian Alliance.
The Nymphs of the Seine has a relief of the arms of Paris, faces the Nymphs of the Neva with the arms of Imperial Russia. They are executed in hammered copper over forms by Georges Récipon. In the same political spirit, the Trinity Bridge in Saint Petersburg was conceived as a memorial to the Franco-Russian Alliance, it was designed by Gustave Eiffel, the first stone was laid in August 1897 by French president Félix Faure. Films and videosIn the 1956 film Anastasia; the Moody Blues’ first music video footage for the song “Nights in White Satin” was shot two times with two scenes throughout the middle and the ending of the song in 1967. In the 1979 film French Postcards, the final romantic scene takes place on the bridge. In the 1985 James Bond film A View to a Kill, Bond comes to a halt at the bridge in a hijacked Renault 11 taxi. Moments Bond jumps from the bridge onto a boat. In the 1997 animated film Anastasia, the bridge is damaged by Rasputin in an attempt to kill Anastasia, who in real life was the granddaughter of Alexander III of Russia.
In the 1998 film Ronin, the spy team meets some arms dealers under the bridge on the Right Bank. In the 2004 film A Very Long Engagement, Marion Cotillard's character kills the character played by François Levantal under the bridge. In the 2005 film Angel-A it is the Pont Alexandre III from which Angela and André jump into the Seine. In the 2006 music video for Mariah Carey's hit single "Say Somethin'" with Pharrell and Snoop Dogg In the 2006 episode "Cold Stones" of The Sopranos, Carmela Soprano and her friend Rosalie Aprile walk in wonderment over the bridge. In the 2011 film Midnight in Paris, the bridge is depicted in multiple scenes, including the final one. Adele's music video for the song "Someone Like You" was shot on the bridge in 2011. In the 2016 film Me Before You, the closing shot was filmed near the northeast corner of the bridge. In the 2016 Bollywood film Befikre, the song "Nashe si Chadh Gayi" was shot on the river bank by the bridge. In the 2017 Broadway musical Anastasia, the bridge is seen in the second half of the musical and in the closing scene.
Anastasia was the granddaughter of Alexander III, mentioned in the musical. In June 2017, with Paris competing against Los Angeles to host the 2024 Olympics, Paris turned some of its world-famous landmarks over to sports and installed boards on the Alexandre III bridge that spanned the Seine. Alexandre III Bridge at Structurae Pont Alexandre III Alexandre III Bridge, current photographs and of the 1900s. Coordinates: 48°51′49″N 2°18′49″E
Barré (automobile)
Barré was a French automobile manufacturer established by Gaston Barré at Niort. Some sources give the starting date for the business as 1900, although Barré’s first automobile was presented in December 1899 at the Paris Motor Show. Production ended in 1930. Barré was born in Cholet on 25 June 1864, but in 1888 relocated to nearby Parthenay, where he worked as a gunsmith. Six years he moved again, establishing himself in 1894 at Niort in the rue Ricard Il, as a manufacturer and renter of cycles. France was in the middle of a massive cycling boom, business was good. Barré relocated his business several times; as he amassed his fortune he decided that the future lay not with the automobile. The first car, powered by a Gaillardet engine, was exhibited in December 1899. Several aspects of Barré’s business distinguish it from the large number of automobile manufacturers being established in France at this time, he created one of the first after-sales service centres, integrated into his business model a driving school.
Another respect in which Barré anticipated the future of automobile manufacturing was the extent to which his cars were developed as an assemblage of components manufactured by and purchased from specialist outside suppliers. During the first decade of the twentieth century the manufacturer used engines from Aster, Buchet and De Dion-Bouton. Rather than tooling up to machine and assemble his own axles and gears, Barré bought in these principal components from companies equipped to produce them. There were instances when he bought in a chassis from a competitor auto-maker. At the World Fair held in Paris in 1900 a Barré voiturette won a gold medal. Business grew, by 1908 the enterprise had 50 employees, was registered using the company name G. Barré et Cie. In 1912 Barré cars won three of the top places in the French Tour de France Automobile, which covered 13 stages over 4,000 kilometres. Throughout the first half of the twentieth century the French auto-industry was remarkably concentrated around Paris, with a secondary hub around Lyon.
The celebrated exception is Peugeot. Barré, were exceptional in locating their production in a small town in the west of France, the pattern of sales was concentrated on the rural western part of the country. On the eve of the First World War, which broke out in 1914, the manufacturer was offering a full range of automobiles. Long after the company ceased to exist, it continues to be commemorated in the name of the local technical school the lycée Gaston Barré. During the First World War Gaston Barré temporarily relocated his company’s legal headquarters to the Paris showroom premises which he had acquired just before the outbreak of war; the factory in Niort was turned over to the production of military vehicles. Early post-war cars used engines supplied by Ballot and by S. C. A. P. Both of them based in the Paris area. In October 1919 Barré again took a stand at the Paris Motor Show; the two cars offered were a 10 HP/CV “Barré Type BA” with a 1,590 cc engine and a 12 HP/CV “Barré Type AB2” with a 2,292 cc unit.
The first of these was a 2-seater ”Torpedo” bodied car, sat on a 2,600 mm wheelbase. The manufacturer published a list price of 13,000 francs for the 2-seater; the second, larger car was a 4-seater. This was offered either with a ”Torpedo” body or a “conduite intérieure” body, the cars priced at 16,000 francs or 18,000 francs. Both the cars exhibited for 1920 looked. In the western region surrounding Niort the cars retained a loyal following, by October 1924 the range on the manufacturer’s stand at the 19th Paris Motor Show Barré comprised three models, they all featured four-cylinder engines, as follows: “Barré Type B4” 8/10 HP 1,685 cc, 2,950 mm wheelbase “Barré Type AS” 10/12 HP 2,356 cc, 3,090 mm wheelbase “Barré Type CS” 12/16 HP 2,803 cc, 3,090 mm wheelbase”Torpedo” bodied versions were priced at 23,000 francs, 25,000 francs and 26,500 francs. However, post-war production never again regained the momentum experienced earlier, a period of slow decline continued till production ended in 1930 or 1933.
Automobiles Barré sur Deux Sèvres Auto Mémoire Usine de construction automobile Barré sur le site du patrimoine industriel du Poitou-Charentes
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